1850 American Gold Baron

Chapter 514 Shen Baozhen

Author: fish nest

"It's a cold day, just ask the servant to pick me up. Why bother to go there yourself?"

Liang Shaoqiong looked very happy when he saw that Liang Yao came to pick him up in person.

"After all, you are also a second-grade official now. I don't dare to neglect and ask the servant to pick you up." Liang Yao joked.

Liang Yao was happy from the bottom of his heart that someone from the Liang family could climb the mountain and take the position of a second-rank official.

Since I have someone at the top of the Qing court, it will be much more convenient for me to work with the Qing government in the future.

"We are all from our own family, why should we meet outsiders? Who is this?" Liang Shaoqiong was very happy. He pointed at Vanderbilt next to Liang Yao and asked.

Liang Shaoqiong had never met Vanderbilt, so the two did not know each other.

"This is my father-in-law, Mr. Vanderbilt." Liang Yao introduced.

"It turns out to be the in-laws from the north." Liang Shaoqiong immediately greeted Vanderbilt in proficient English and ordered the servant on the side to fetch a calligraphy painting.

"Mr. Fan, this is a book of blessings. It was the Emperor of the Qing Dynasty who bestowed upon me the character "福". It is a personal letter written by the current emperor. It is a small meeting gift and cannot be considered respectful."

With their hands free, Britain and France shifted their attention from the Near East to the Far East.

"I drank this stuff with foreigners in Shanghai. It was extremely bitter and worse than medicine. I can't get used to it. You might as well make me a pot of tea." Liang Shaoqiong refused.

"I heard that my in-laws are wealthy businessmen in the United States. I am very rich. In the future, I will do some small business in the United States. I am afraid that I will have to trouble my in-laws to take care of me."

"Young Master Liang can do such a thing at such a young age, which is unparalleled by others." Shen Baozhen said.

Their real demand was to amend the treaty and open up inland waterways so that they could extend their tentacles into the interior of the Qing Dynasty.

It turned out that all the British ships had sailed to the Bohai Sea. No wonder the Qing court was anxious.

"There are only three of us in the study now. If Brother Shen and Third Uncle have anything to do, it doesn't matter."

"This is what the Holy Father is most worried about, so Prince Gong sent me to the United States for inspection. Firstly, he wanted to purchase items to enhance the firepower of the Dagukou Fort. Secondly, he wanted me to come and see the shipyards in the United States for future construction.

The shipping manager is preparing." Shen Baozhen said.

"Shen hasn't tasted it yet, and I'd like to try it." Shen Baozhen wanted to give it a try.

Looking at Shen Baozhen who was hesitant and a little embarrassed, Liang Shaoqiong still said: "Youdan, it's okay, my nephew has always been informal."

After spending some time, the group finally arrived at the stone screen wall of their new residence.

In the Qing Dynasty, there was a ceremony to write "Fu" at the end of each year, which first started in the sixth year of Kangxi. By the time of Yongzheng, at the end of each year, meritorious governors were often rewarded, and even the words "Fu" such as "Ti Zhen" and "Chief Envoy" were often awarded. They were also called

Bless the emperor with books.

Although Shen Baozhen's family was poor when he was young, his father was also a private school teacher, and the Lin clan where his uncle belonged has always been a wealthy family. It is not wrong to say that he came from a scholarly family.

"Shen Baozhen, I have met General Liang." Shen Baozhen reported his family name.

"Every general is a monster. If Brother Shen doesn't give up, you can call me your wise brother." Liang Yao said.

"It's similar to the mayor of Sacramento, but the mayor of the Qing Dynasty has much more power than the mayor of the United States." Liang Yao explained Vanderbilt's confusion.

After entering the door, I saw a group of workers building a fountain.

"Business matters are easy to talk about. Recently, I have some spare money that I plan to invest. If there is a way to invest and make a fortune in the Qing Dynasty, the Minister must remember me," Vanderbilt said.

"How can this be so embarrassing?"

"Prefect of Fuzhou Prefecture?" Liang Yao felt something was wrong, "Isn't the prefect of Fuzhou Prefecture's surname Qian?"

He and Shen Baozhen were considered brothers. If Liang Yao and Shen Baozhen were also considered brothers, wouldn't he and Liang Yao be equals?

"My dear brother, you are humble. With your qualifications, if there had not been a sudden change in your family and you concentrated on the imperial examination, you would definitely have accomplished something." Facing the banknotes handed over by Liang Yao, Shen Baozhen did not refuse. After thinking for a while, he

Just make it happen.

Liang Shaoqiong became an official by running a troupe. During the three years since he became an official, he was not favored by the mainstream officialdom. Liang Shaoqiong was able to make friends like Shen Baozhen. Mr. Liang was also very happy and chatted with Shen Baozhen until the meal.

There are no merit columns at the entrance to a traditional Chinese-style house on the left and right sides of the screen wall. Instead, there are two flagpoles. The flagpole on the left hangs the bear flag, the state flag of California, and the flagpole on the right hangs the stars and stripes.

He coerced the Qing government to apologize and amend the treaty, and opened the two inland trade channels of the Yangtze River and the Pearl River, as well as the inland river ports along the coast, as treaty ports, and allowed the two countries to delineate concessions at the treaty ports so that the two countries could carry out trade in the inland areas of the Qing Dynasty.

By the time of Emperor Qianlong, who was an enthusiast for stamping, the imperial blessings began to be distributed indiscriminately, and the scope expanded to princes, princes, military ministers, and enshrined in the South Study Room. As for whether the recipients had meritorious service, it no longer mattered. Maybe it was Qianlong's simplicity.

I give these to my ministers just because I like stamps.

As a result, the relationship between the Qing Dynasty and Britain and France became tense.

For the sake of purity, Liang Yao's new residence in Sacramento is not very close to the train station.

"Brother Liang Xian has a sharp eye." Seeing Liang Yao's direct attitude, Shen Baozhen didn't mince words.

Such a large-scale manor was rare in the Qing Dynasty.

"At present, the imperial court is suffering from internal and external troubles. There are troubles inside and Western barbarians are invading the border. Since July, the ships of the British and French barbarians have repeatedly invaded our Qing Dynasty. The British and barbarians in particular are very arrogant and warlike.

The boat was strong and the artillery was powerful, but I was fooled that the Qing Dynasty had no big ships, so I sailed directly to Dagukou to spy on my Dagukou fort."

"The carriage and horses are ready, please come to the humble house to have a chat." Liang Yao asked Liang Shaoqiong and Shen Baozhen to get on the carriage.

Yue Yong's artillery camp had many hired foreign gunners. Liang Shaoqiong had some business overseas, and it was inevitable that he would have to deal with foreigners, so he also knew some English.

Vanderbilt was also curious about Shen Baozhen's identity, but his Chinese was not very difficult. He didn't hear clearly the conversation between Liang Yao and Shen Baozhen, so he couldn't help but ask after getting in the car.

His uncle and father-in-law, Lin Zexu, once served as governor of Guangdong and Guangxi and served as an imperial envoy, but he could not own such a lavish manor.

"Your Excellency, the Minister's English is really good." After receiving the gift, Vanderbilt praised Liang Shaoqiong with a smile on his face.

"Who is this?" Liang Yao asked, pointing to a man in his thirties who was beside Liang Shaoqiong. He was a little lean but very energetic.

"This place is very nice. It's not far from the busy city, but it's still clean. Brother Liang Xiandi will enjoy it." Shen Baozhen looked at the manor that was out of sight and said with great envy.

This man has a majestic appearance and a confident and calm gait. He does not look like Liang Shaoqiong's follower.

"Liang is a rough man. He has always heard that Brother Shen came from a scholarly family and was a Jinshi in the 27th year of Daoguang's reign (1847). Today, Brother Shen has the honor to visit me. I also hope that Brother Shen will not hesitate to give me a calligraphy treasure for me."

Come up with a name." Liang Yao said.

"It's a long story. Qian Daxin was the former prefect, and my good brother is the new prefect." Liang Shaoqiong explained.

Liang Yao's original owner did know a little bit of calligraphy, but after arriving in the United States, due to the habit of his previous life, Liang Yao basically used a hard pen to write. The original owner's calligraphy skills had long been completely lost by him.

After the meal, Liang Yao knew that the two of them came to California this time for important matters, so he invited them to his study.

Different from the long-standing brick screen walls in the Qing Dynasty, the screen wall in Liang Yao's new residence is carved from a complete piece of marble.

"Definitely, definitely." Liang Shaoqiong smiled.

Therefore, Shen Baozhen, who came to Liang Yao's residence, immediately visited Mr. Liang.

"Look at my bad memory, I'm patronizing my in-laws, brother Youdan, I'm sorry." Liang Shaoqiong hurriedly introduced to Liang Yao, "This is Mr. Shen, the prefect of Fuzhou Prefecture, who is also my middle-ranking official in the government.

Lots of friends.”

During the reign of Emperors Kang and Yong, this was used to reward meritorious officials.

It turned out to be Shen Baozhen, and Liang Yao was a little surprised by Shen Baozhen's sudden visit to California. Could it be that the Qing government wanted to establish a Westernization and Shipping Administration? Liang Yao thought secretly.

Liang Shaoqiong on the side felt that something was wrong after listening to Liang Yao's words, and he quickly realized it.

Liang Yao said a little apologetically: "The house is not yet completed, which makes you laugh."

Vanderbilt said no, but his hands were honest and he snatched the calligraphy treasure.

Liang Yao has immigration stations at five ports: Guangzhou, Xiamen, Fuzhou, Ningbo, and Shanghai, responsible for picking up immigrants heading to the West Coast.

In the second half of 1856, Britain and France repeatedly provoked quarrels and troubles along the coast of the Qing Dynasty. They also claimed that the consuls and merchants of the two countries were discriminated against in China, and the "legal" missionary activities of Christian missionaries in China were restricted.

"The vegetation here is lush and the scenery is beautiful. Brother Yu was also inspired by this, so he wrote these three words. I hope Brother Liang Xian won't laugh." Shen Baozhen handed the pen back to the servant.

"Weixiuju is an elegant name."

"What a calligraphy! What a calligraphy!" Liang Yao exclaimed after taking over Shen Baozhen's still-dry calligraphy.

"Oh!" Liang Yao said in surprise, "Dagukou is the gateway to the capital. The British troops are very sharp. They defeated Russia in the Near East at the beginning of the year and returned with a great victory. Now the morale of the British army is at its peak. The British army

Once we land at Dagukou, the road from Dagukou to the capital will be flat and there will be no danger to defend, and the consequences will be disastrous."

It must be said that the emperors of the Qing Dynasty had good calligraphy skills, so this calligraphy treasure is still very valuable for collection.

Therefore, he had some impression of the local chief officials of Wukou. As far as Liang Yao knew, the prefect of Fuzhou Prefecture was Qian Daxin.

This is a rare thing. His old friends in the east often laugh at him for being rude and uncultured. With this thing, he can show it off and brag in front of them when he returns to the east.

The screen wall is in the shape of a straight line, and the top of the screen wall is carved with birds, animals and other patterns as decoration.

After Russia, Britain, France, Austria and Prussia signed the Treaty of Paris on March 30, 1856 in Paris, France, the Crimean War ended with the victory of Britain and France.

It can also be seen that Liang Shaoqiong did not care about the calligraphy given by the emperor to others. If it were an ordinary minister, he would have wanted to frame the calligraphy given by the emperor and hang it in the hall to show off, so it was impossible to give it to others.

It is sheer nonsense that citizens of Britain and France enjoyed extraterritorial rights beyond national treatment in the Qing Dynasty, and that consuls, merchants, and missionaries from the two countries received discrimination in the Qing Dynasty.

Liang Yao's new manor in Sacramento is quite large. Liang Yao doesn't want to be careless in the construction of the new manor, so the construction progress is not very fast. As of now, only the main building of the new manor has been completed and decorated.

"This is foreigners' tea, called coffee. I wonder if you two are interested in trying it?" Liang Yao asked.

Liang Yao glanced at the calligraphy treasure Liang Shaoqiong gave to Vanderbilt, and saw a big Chinese character "福" written in the middle. A red seal was stamped above the character "福", and there was a row of small characters on the left: To Liang Shaoqiong, the right minister of the second-grade war department. On the right The date of blessing is written on it.

"Some of my subordinates also speak English, so they have learned a bit." Liang Shaoqiong said openly without any hesitation.

"Brother Shen traveled thousands of miles across the ocean to come to California. He must not be here to drink coffee." Liang Yao said after sitting down.

"What is this friend's official position in the Qing Dynasty?"

When he arrived, Liang Shaoqiong told Shen Baozhen that Mr. Liang was still in California and had not returned to Xiangshan yet.

Of course, Britain and France, the two victors in the Crimean War, are not the only ones who are not stopping.

The defeated Tsarist Russia was also eager to try in the Far East at this time, wanting to carve out some big pieces of flesh from the Qing Dynasty to make up for the losses that Tsarist Russia suffered in the Crimean War.

Both sides regarded the Qing Dynasty as a delicious piece of fat meat, ready to take a bite.

It's just that Britain and France are concerned about their international image and domestic public opinion, and they will try their best to find some high-sounding excuses to show the necessity and "justice" of sending troops.

As for the way Tsarist Russia eats, it's even worse. They don't even bother to find excuses and just grab it openly.